Thermoplastic resins are widely used in a number of business sectors, including the automotive, packaging, construction, and electrical and electronic industries. Historically, these materials have been derived from petrochemical sources. More recently, societal concern regarding the environment has motivated suppliers to look to renewable resources, such as from plants and animals, to make thermoplastic resins. The use of materials from renewable resources—so called “bio-based” materials—holds the promise of reducing the environmental footprint, limiting greenhouse gas emissions, and slowing the depletion of non-renewable petroleum resources.
For example, polyamides (such as nylon) are combined with other polymeric materials to make a variety of useful thermoplastic resins. Polyamides are produced from the condensation of dicarboxylic acids with diamines. Historically, both components were derived from petrochemical resources. Today, plants and other renewable sources account for an increasing list of polyamide starting materials. The resulting polyamides are either fully or partially bio-based.
To that end, a need persists for thermoplastic resins comprising bio-based polyamides, as well as methods for making such resins and articles prepared therefrom.